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Quest PharmaTech Announces Formation of Clinical Advisory Panel

TSX Venture: QPT

EDMONTON, July 9 /CNW/ - Quest PharmaTech Inc. (TSX-V: QPT) ("Quest" or the "Company"), a pharmaceutical company developing and commercializing products for the treatment of cancer, today announced the formation of an international clinical advisory panel (the "Panel").

This Panel of international experts with special expertise in ovarian cancer has been charted to guide the Company through the conduct and analysis of its clinical trials program with Oregovomab as well as to provide strategic guidance on other programs.

"The formation of the Clinical Advisory Panel is indicative of our progression as a cancer immunotherapy company and we look forward to working with these Panel members to advance our clinical programs", said Dr. Madi R. Madiyalakan, Quest's Chief Executive Officer. The Company plans to initiate three clinical studies with Oregovomab, one in combination with front line therapy, one in combination with gemcitabine in CA125 expressing pancreatic cancer, and one in combination with the TLR3 agonist, rintatolimod.

The Panel will be chaired by Christopher Nicodemus, MD, FACP, a clinical expert in tumor immunology and drug development, formerly of Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, who is very familiar with the Oregovomab clinical program. He currently is Chairman and Chief Scientific Officer of Advanced Immune Therapeutics Inc, of Charlestown, Massachusetts, a private biotechnology company exploring the role of IgE as a cancer therapeutic and also the potential of various adjuvant strategies for immunotherapy.

Joining Dr. Nicodemus in the U.S. is Professor William McGuire, formerly of Johns Hopkins University and currently Medical Director of the Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Cancer Institute at Franklin Square Hospital Center in Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. McGuire is a leading clinical oncologist with a special interest in ovarian cancer and pioneer to improving outcomes in this disease. Dr. McGuire was instrumental in developing the paclitaxel plus cisplatin combination - the foundation for the standard treatment of advanced ovarian cancer.

From Europe, the Panel will include Professor Ignace Vergote, head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and Gynaecologic Oncology at the Catholic University of Leuven. Dr. Vergote has a long personal interest in the treatment of ovarian cancer and has served as the Chairman of the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC), and as president of the European Society of Gynaecological Oncology and the International Gynecologic Cancer Society. He is the author of more than 50 original full papers in peer-reviewed journals, together with 45 book chapters, and has edited several books on Gynaecological Oncology.

From Canada, Professor Thomas Ehlen of the University of British Columbia and Vancouver General Hospital will complete the Panel. Dr. Ehlen has been a major North American clinical investigator with Oregovomab with substantial direct clinical experience and multiple publications on the antibody.

"All members of the Panel have a keen interest in innovative improvements in the area of ovarian cancer and see a great opportunity to advance the previous learning with Oregovomab in the context of combination therapies to better access the potential of the immune response to bring clinical benefit to ovarian cancer patients," commented Dr. Nicodemus. "We are excited about the potential of the approach for these three planned clinical trials."

About Quest PharmaTech Inc.

Quest is a publicly traded, Alberta-based biotechnology company committed to the development and commercialization of oncology product candidates. It is developing a series of products for the treatment of cancer based on its pipeline of SonoLight compounds; and monoclonal antibodies which target certain tumor antigens that are presented in a variety of cancers. Quest believes that by combining these antibodies with other cancer therapies such as chemotherapy, photodynamic therapy or radioimmuno-therapy, it can potentially further complement and enhance treatment outcomes compared to antibody treatment alone.

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